His Little Girl
by toumeiillusion
Summary: (Reverse Pines AU) She was my peach, my little cream puff, not anyone else's. I would be damned before I let anyone try to take her away from me. [Twelve Shots of Summer: Second Raid]


"Stop it!" The screech of her voice hit my ears and made me flinch. She was so loud, so close, it made the intensity of it worse. Grace was hurt, angry even, and with me. Of all people she had ever been even somewhat upset with, even though she was only capable of such small amounts of it, she had never been upset with me. She had never been angry with me.

I turned round to face her, bringing the pathetic and useless mess that was William Cipher with me, and analyzed her face. Her deep brown eyes, the ones all three of us siblings shared, were watery with her precious tears. Her pudgy cheeks were a deeper red than they tended to be. It accented the light freckling in her face. That was a normal sight for me. She cried often, and there was nothing unordinary about my seeing it. It was the creased of her brow and the deep frown that truly proved her anger.

"Now, sugar-pie, what's got you all riled up? You can't really be angry for my giving William the punishment he deserves, now can you?"

She took a few shaky steps forward, her expression softening ever so slightly as I spoke. Her hand reached out to gently touch the face of the fool I held onto and she went to her knees. He leaned into it the way one leans into the touch of a lover. The grip I kept on his arm tightened and I clenched my jaw. He was lucky enough I let him touch my little flower. He had no business being familiar with her in any way.

As I looked down on them, Grace raised her head. Our eyes connected. I held her gaze as long as I could before it seemed as though she was looking into my very soul. With a soft grunt, I turned my head and let go of William, letting him fall to the floor. I could still see as she took him into her arms and helped him stand. Grace wasted no time in helping him to the door.

"Grace. I'll want you back here the moment he's settled, you hear?" There was a pause and the sound of clothes rustling, as if she shifted.

"As you wish, brother dearest."

"I don't understand, Mabel. Why does she care for that… That sniveling demon! The only thing he has ever been good for is cleaning. There is nothing he could ever do for us, let alone for her."

Mabel raised an eyebrow, pushing her hair over her shoulder and examining a nail. She seemed as uninterested as she always was when it came to an issue I brought up, but her eyes shone with the same light they always got when she thought. "She does spend a fair amount of time with him. Perhaps she's developed some sort of feelings for him. You know very well how she is, hmm?"

I glared at her, not appreciating the implications of her words. "Don't test me now, sister dear. I'm not in the mood for your games."

"Who's playing games, brother of mine? I'm just stating a fact. You didn't think that was a secret, did you?" A smirk played on her lips and her eyes danced. I tried not to let her into my head, turning away and taking a deep breath. If I let her toy with my emotions the way she does everyone else, she wins. I'm was not about to let that happen under any circumstances.

With new found composure, I turned and gave her a stern look. She was having far too much fun at my expense and it was tiring. I could only handle so much of her playing when a problem was actually important. Giving in, she rolled her eyes and dropped her hand.

"Alright, calm down, Mr. Fussy Pants. It obvious our little Gracie dear likes him. What's so bad about that? I admit she has horrid taste," she said, flashing another cool smirk, knowing what she was saying would get under my skin. "But there's nothing wrong with her having our pet as a friend. He wouldn't hurt her, after all. Not when he's so afraid of you."

I let out a sigh, crossing my arms over my chest. She was, unfortunately, right but that didn't change that it bothered me. I couldn't approve of her having William for a friend, let alone anything else. She was my peach, my little cream puff, not anyone else's. I would be damned before I let anyone try to take her away from me.

Mabel stood with a flourish and placed a hand on her hip. "I see you're lost in your own inner monologue so I'll just let you be on your lonesome for now."

I didn't bother to look as she was leaving, waiting for the click of the door to sit in the chair she had previously occupied. Grace was taking a long time getting back from dropping William in his room. I had given her leeway in my order, of course, but it still shouldn't have taken more than ten minutes and it was verging on twenty. My fingers tapped on the arm of the chair.

 _What in the world could be taking her so long?_ I tried to remember if he'd had any wounds that would cause him problems but the only thing that had bled was his nose, and barely that. I hadn't even broken his arm. She was probably coddling him the way she coddled Mabel and I when we were sick. The notion of it was more aggravating than the idea that she and the blue, simpering demon were friends.

A lightbulb in the lamp nearest to me burst and spewed glass onto the floor. The room dimmed with the lack of artificial lighting. I scoffed and waved a hand, lifting the glass up and onto a desk. It could be taken care of later. I certainly wasn't going to be cleaning it up myself.

"Dipper…?"

My head turned and my eyes landed on Grace's form. She was half hidden behind the door like she was trying to make herself even smaller than she was. I waved her in, not bothering with trying to give her a smile. She stepped in slowly, standing just barely away from the door, and I rose from the chair, coming closer to her and gently closing the door for her.

"Why is it that you seem so determined to defend William?" I asked in a quiet voice. Grace bit her lip and looked down, letting my words linger in the air. It seemed like she was trying to come up with an answer, as if she didn't have one beforehand.

"He likes you. I don't want him to be hurt by someone he likes." She hesitated just a little, but it was enough for me to know that she wasn't being honest. My hand balled up into a fist and my nails dug into my skin. She was practically lying to me. I couldn't stand for that.

My hand collided with the wall before I could stop to compose myself. Grace shook and flinched away, eyes closed tightly. She had every reason to be scared, and she probably was, but I didn't care. She wasn't telling me the truth.

"Grace Gleeful, we both know that's not what you want to say. Don't lie to me. Why does he matter to you so much?"

"He's my friend, Dipper, and he's scared. He's absolutely terrified of you and Mabel and he needs someone to mediate. He never gets a break from all the thousands of things you have him do. He… He needs me…" She clasped her hands in front of her, voice shaking and soft.

"And I don't?" Her head shot up, nearly knocking into mine, and her wide eyes stared into mine. Her bangs fell into her face and her face slowly flushed with a gentle pink. I brought a hand to her cheek and softly brushed over it with the tips of my fingers before resting the palm against it. She leaned into me and covered my hand with one of her own. Like always, she melted into me.

"I'm sorry," she muttered quietly. "I just don't want him to be hurt either… Please, Dipper? Can you try to be nicer to him?"

I pulled my hand away from her, leaving Grace with a trace of a pout on her face. I knew she wanted to hear a definite yes but that wasn't something I could give to her. Everything I did was fair. If William needed to be reprimanded for something he'd done then there was no point in being nice about it. He was, after all, a demon and being gentle or nice with him wasn't going to teach him how he should behave.

"…I'll try, but I can't make any promises. If he goes too far, it's out of my hands." I watched her expression fall for just a moment before she gave a nod, the answer satisfying her. With a hint of a smile, I pulled her into my arms and patted her head. She was slow to reciprocate but the moment her hands came to my back I knew she would overcome whatever disappointment she had.

I pulled away from her and took one of her hands into mine. "Let's go get you ready now, okay? We have a show tonight and I want to be ready just a bit earlier than usual…"


End file.
